[Libreoffice-bugs] [Bug 133061] New macOS icon theme lacks polish and integration

Mon May 18 13:15:37 UTC 2020

https://bugs.documentfoundation.org/show_bug.cgi?id=133061

--- Comment #6 from Pedro <vermelhusco1904 at gmail.com> ---
(In reply to jon.chambers3001 from comment #0)
> Created attachment 160849 [details]
> style action icons
> 
> Honestly, the new default macOS icon theme doesn't look that great or fit
> very well with the mac OS esthetic. I'm sorry to have to make this harsh
> criticism knowing someone has put effort into this, but in general it lacks
> maturity and should be reverted to the old default (Breeze). 
> 
> The previous icon themes have been used for a long time in many projects,
> giving a lot of time to address detailed design issues (see a few specific
> criticisms below).
> 
> The icon set is a core part of the visual identity of Libreoffice and
> critical to its appeal and usability. I don't think it is a good approach to
> change the default to something that has not been extremely thoroughly
> tested, revised, and reviewed. I have never come across any complaints about
> the use of Breeze icons on macOS, better to stick with what is known to
> work. 
> 
> 
> Some specific design issues:
> 
> - Excessive use of color and color contrasts. Most macOS software today uses
> relatively muted/grayscale icons with color only to highlight actions where
> relevant (see for example the Mail app). The most 'icon heavy' app that
> people will have seen regularly is probably MS Office suite, which adopts a
> muted scheme similar to Breeze and Colibri.
> 
> - Apparent icon sizes are inconsistent. Issues in how the icon contents
> visually 'fill' their space mean they look untidy next to each other.
> Achieving a consistent look across all icons is going to be difficult and
> require a lot of work.
> 
> - Some of the icons are extremely cluttered (see attachment), which makes
> them look amaturish.
> 
> 
> Now I don't want to upset whoever produced these icons, but its important to
> understand that the icon set of an app like Libreoffice is a critical part
> of its UI and should not be changed lightly.

While I can agree that icon sizes might be improved upon I'll address the other
points you make.
LibreOffice tries to adopt a look specific to each Desktop
Environment/Operating System. The Breeze icon set that was being used in MacOS
is the icon set for the Plasma Desktop Environment. It was never supposed to be
the native MacOS icon set. Nevertheless, this option was not removed from LO
7.0 so you can select this icon set if you want to.

The look of Sukapura is mostly inspired by the icon set of Microsoft Office for
Mac, which is also a specific icon set for MacOS. It might not follow all the
guidelines of MacOS but LibreOffice faces similar constraints. It won't ever
look as a native software in MacOS because of lack of developer man power,
hence the next best thing is to create a look exclusive to MacOS that follows
as many guidelines as possible.

This leads to the next point: the color palette of Sukapura is Apple's own
color palette. If you are criticizing the color palette then you are
criticizing Apple's own choice. This is a matter of your own personal opinion. 

https://developer.apple.com/design/human-interface-guidelines/macos/windows-and-views/toolbars/

If you check Apple's own guidelines, toolbars in MacOS can adopt either
colorful Image Buttons or system controls, but not both. As it is obvious
LibreOffice uses what Apple classifies as Image Buttons. Are they colorful?
Yes. Do they follow Apple's guidelines? Yes. Are they made using Apple's color
palette? Yes.

So, you might not like them but Apple's guidelines were taken into
consideration and your criticism is not valid beyond the scope of a personal
opinion.

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